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The M6G sidearm is a semi-automatic, recoil-operated, magazine-fed, large caliber handgun. It is a later model of the M6 series sidearms that was distributed to officers and vehicle/weapon crews.[1] The weapon has a polymer handle, along with a titanium alloy body and what appears to be an anti-corrosion nickel-plate finish. The sidearm fires the M225 SAP-HE (Semi-Armor Piercing, High Explosive) rounds from an 8-round magazine at a velocity of 427 m/s (1302.35 ft/s).

Performance wise, the M6G sidearm has a relatively low rate of fire, being able to deliver two rounds per second or 120 rounds per minute. It could achieve a maximum effective range of 50 meters and is very accurate and precise, proving itself to be the jack of all trades for close-to-medium range operation.

The M6G uses 12.7×40mm (.50 caliber) M225 SAP-HE (Semi-Armor Piercing, High Explosive). These rounds have a jacket of copper or cupro-nickel around the projectile while the projectile itself is hollow and filled with an explosive compound and a delayed-detonation impact fuse.

When the round impacts a target, the jacket will initially help the projectile maintain its shape, allowing it to travel into the target before detonating almost immediately after impact, causing massive tissue damage and system shock.

Probable reasons for using semi-armor piercing rounds instead of armor piercing projectiles are both to prevent over-penetration of hostiles and decreasing the risk of friendly fire during CQB and urban combat, and their devastating efficiency against soft targets. The explosive properties of the rounds render them decently effective against personal shielding systems and are also capable of damaging lightly-armored vehicles.

The M6G is designed primarily for extreme ruggedness and reliability. It is a very useful sidearm for close quarter battles, and skirmishes. The UNSC has issued the M6 series of pistols as a standard sidearm because of its effectiveness against armor and shields, while retaining high impact force due to the high caliber and projectile mass.

The M6G, like its predecessor the M6D, requires the same amount of skill to use, and a person who can effectually lead his shots, with a good understanding of how the weapon works will be able to take down targets with ease.

The M6G, unlike the M6D, has a slower firing rate (Marine variant), and as such downing an enemy will take considerable time. If the person wielding it does not take into account of how the weapon works, or is unable to dodge enemy fire, they will be killed quickly by their opponent. Its eight-round magazine also puts the user at a disadvantage should a couple of rounds miss its target. A user must be precise and know at what range to engage the enemy or risk being killed.

The Army variant is semi-automatic, and is also capable of firing almost twice as fast as the Marine variant. It is issued with a smart-linked KFA-2 ×2 scope, has a shorter, stockier barrel, a different slide and grip, and an electroless-nickel finish. It fires a .50 caliber semi armor-piercing ammunition. The Army variant also has a rather high fire rate of 240 rounds per minute (4 rounds per second), reducing the accuracy as a result.

The Marine variant is of the same general size and proportions, with exception to a slightly longer barrel and is not issued with a smart-linked KFA-2 ×2 scope, unlike the Army variant. Although still semi-automatic, the Marine variant has a slower rate of fire (50% less at 120 rounds per minute and 2 rounds per second) than its counterpart, but has increased accuracy.[1]

One possible influence is the IMI Desert Eagle. Though their outward appearances are different, both weapons are of similar size and caliber, and the slide of the M6G comprises the rear of the frame instead of the entire upper area, common with the Eagle.

Another likely candidate is the Heckler & Koch P7 series or the Steyr M. Another possible influence on the design of this weapon was the FP-45 Liberator, a weapon designed in the United States during World War II. The long handle and short barrel is an obvious feature. Another possible influence is the M1911 for its long use and durability under any conditions.

The M6G is quite useful against most sparse targets that are encountered throughout diverse combat. Enemies such as Grunts and Jackals can be quickly dispatched with a single headshot and enemies like Drones and members of the Flood can be dispatched in as few as one to two well-placed shots. The same can be applied to unshielded Brutes with one well-placed shot to the head.

The M6G's high-caliber rounds give it the ability to stumble non-berserk, unshielded enemies. This is most noticeable if firing at the feet, where enemies like Brutes suffer the longest injury recovery time.

Experienced players can say that the M6G is one of the most underestimated weapons of Halo 3, and can make a solid headshot-capable weapon if used correctly.

Wielding a pair of Magnums performs quite well against shielded targets, but is restricted due to their rate of fire. Dual-wielding a Magnum with other weapons such as a SMG or a Plasma Pistol is also quite effective as the SMG depletes shielding quickly, while the Magnum finishes the target off; a Plasma Pistol's charged shot will completely drain any shielding system allowing the Magnum to perform the lethal head shot.

In Halo: Reach, the Magnum possesses a 5-shot kill on SPARTAN-IIIs, equal in power to the DMR with a higher firing rate at the cost of less ammo and higher recoil taking 4 shots to down the shields and either a single headshot or 3 body shots to finish off the enemy. The infamous Noob Combo can be used or the Plasma Pistol can be quickly fired 3-4 times to take down shields quickly before switching to a Magnum to deliver the killing headshot. At close range the Magnum is more effective than the MA37 Assault rifle if fired quickly and is also more effective at Mid-range even, as long as the shots are controlled. At long range shot placement and control is extremely vital due to the high recoil/bloom of the weapon and even so, the weapon may completely miss, as despite the use of the scope, the targeting reticle is still too large for a precision weapon.

Like the M6D, the M6G has Asian calligraphy stamped on the barrel, but in this case, they are Korean characters instead of Chinese characters. It is also featured on the bottom of the magazine. The symbol 일곱 (ilgop[2]), when reflected, translates to 7.

The words "Misriah Armory" are written on the side. Similarly, the M6G has a Marathon symbol on the grip near the back.

Aesthetically, the M6G seems to be a combination of M6C's way of being held, and the M6D look and structure.

It is incorrectly labeled in the instruction manual as having 12 rounds per magazine, instead of the actual 8 rounds it has in-game.

Unlike the M6D, when a full magazine is emptied, the slide of the M6G(C variant) does not lock back to wait for another fresh magazine to be inserted (but the M6G(B) does).

It costs 1615 cR to make one Magnum pistol, more than a Flamethrower, which costs 1520 cR.

The M6G pistol does about twice as much damage as the MA5C Assault rifle; on Heroic difficulty, a human Marine dies after 24 Assault rifle shots, or after 12 pistol shots.

A shot from the M6G pistol is marginally less damaging than a three-round burst from the Battle Rifle; it takes 12 pistol shots or 10 three-round bursts from the Battle Rifle to kill a human Marine on Heroic difficulty.

In an old poster related to the human weapons of Halo 3, the M6G is incorrectly labeled as an M6C.

This variant of the M6 appears to be a homage to the 44 Magnum Pistol in Marathon. Using the same number of rounds per magazine, the same rate of fire, dual wield capability and sporting an unusable scope. Even the reload time is the same.

In Halo: Reach, Spartan players hold the pistol and reload with both hands, but Elite players use only one hand.

When fired by an Elite character in multiplayer, the gun's reticle will "jump" and refocus if the scope is zoomed in whereas a Spartan III zooming in will keep the reticle steady. This may be due to the Elites' larger hands making it harder for them to hold human weapons, as well as the fact they hold the weapon with one hand, while a Spartan-III holds it with two.

The M6G in Halo: Reach may have been intended to have iron sights instead of the scope, this is because there is a small light visible under the "hood" which is very similar to the lights on the rear sights.

Of all the Bungie-made games, the M6G is the first pistol and the last pistol model used in the games chronologically.

After Reach's title update in 2011, the M6G retains most of the characteristics of Halo: Combat Evolved's M6D with the exception of magazine size.

In any game mode, when the player draws their weapon, the player seems to turn off the safety switch.

↑The conflicting visuals printed on Halo 3's M6G and Halo: Reach's M6G lead to the assumption that the sidearms used in both games are of two different sub-models. However, the printed names are in the format of variants of the M6, rather than sub-variants of the M6G. No other piece of evidence has been given as to naming these sub-variants.